Chapter 48: COXCOLX is very important.

1-A class’s cultural festival entry is a cosplay café.

The concept is simple yet popular: choose between butler outfits or maid costumes and serve guests while dressed in them.

The total number of students in class 1-A is 28, perfectly split between boys and girls.

Among them, 18 chose butler outfits, while 10 opted for maid costumes.

No boys chose maid outfits, but four girls selected butler outfits. Among them, Kayano, claimed to be the pride of

class 1-A by Tateyama, was one of the four girls in butler attire.

“…Wow.”

Miyauchi couldn’t help but let out an exclamation.

Standing in front of her was Kayano, dressed in a butler outfit.

Initially, Miyauchi had questioned Kayano’s choice to wear a butler outfit when she first announced it.

While she wasn’t sure if Kayano was indeed the pride of class 1-A as Tateyama said, it was a fact that Kayano was the

cutest girl Miyauchi had ever seen in her life.

There were times she even thought Kayano was cuter than a doll.

But a butler outfit?

Didn’t it seem too mismatched?

It was natural for those thoughts to arise.

But wasn’t it said that the completion of fashion is the face?

Seeing Kayano emerge in her butler outfit, Miyauchi could only swallow her breath in silence.

The soft brown hair flowing down her back matched perfectly with the black butler attire, while her blue eyes

contrasted against the outfit, enhancing an air of mystery.

Additionally, her petite stature for a high school girl combined with the long lines of the butler outfit made Miyauchi

feel a sense of moral conflict.

Above all, Kayano’s unique cool demeanor blended with the outfit made Miyauchi’s worries vanish without a trace.

“Wow, it really suits you. You look better than most boys!”

Tateyama, who was watching alongside her, seemed to share a similar sentiment, repeatedly offering compliments.

“…Is that so?”

However, Kayano appeared to be numb to such praise, as if she were used to it.

“Um, well, I suppose it’s alright for me to go out now…?”

“Ah, yes! It’s still quite a while until everyone gathers, so please sit anywhere and take a good rest.”

At Miyauchi’s reply, Kayano turned her gaze away, checking her outfit a little more.

“Haa….”

She let out a barely audible sigh, choosing not to sit and leaving the classroom instead.

As if she didn’t want to stay in the classroom for even a moment longer.

“…Ah.”

Only then did Miyauchi realize.

For Kayano, who had endured hardships due to her appearance since childhood, a cosplay café that used looks as a weapon could trigger trauma.

‘Why didn’t I consider that?’

Reflecting on it, Miyauchi remembered that when deciding on the cultural festival entry, Kayano had certainly voted

for a regular café instead of a cosplay café.

‘I should have noticed then!’

Both cafés were similar, so why did she oppose the cosplay café?

It was an easily understood reason with just a little thought.

‘I’m sorry, Kayano.’

Miyauchi bit her lip, swallowing the apology internally.

Of course, no one was there to respond to that apology.

If she had to choose between a boy’s outfit and a girl’s outfit, she would definitely pick a boy’s outfit.

It felt more familiar and comfortable.

The reason she chose a butler outfit was naturally for that very reason.

“Wow, it really suits you. You look better than most boys!”

Tateyama praised me when I came out in the butler outfit.

Well, of course. I am undeniably a super cute girl.

The completion of fashion is the face.

Unless I intend to deliberately mess it up, I can pull off any outfit.

“Is that so…?”

But apart from that, my mind had already reached its limit.

Miyauchi’s discreet glances and Tateyama’s admiring gaze were far too overwhelming.

If there had only been one of them, I could have managed to climb to the level of a super socialite (Jin).

My heart was pounding violently, and my stomach churned painfully.

Honestly, I felt like I might throw up, but I was gritting my teeth and holding on.

If it weren’t for the training I received from Yang and broadcasting, I would have surely collapsed by now…

As expected, Miyauchi quietly nodded her head, indicating there were no issues.

In that case!

“Um… Is it alright for me to go out now…?”

“Ah, yes! It’s still quite a while until everyone gathers, so please sit anywhere and relax.”

As soon as Miyauchi gave her permission, I turned my body and headed out of the classroom.

“Haa….”

The clean air of the empty morning hallway.

I am alive…

I could endure the attention to a certain extent, as I had become somewhat accustomed to it.

Given my appearance, it was only natural for people to look my way.

If I hadn’t been able to handle that much, I probably would have refused to go to school.

But when the attention turned into direct interest, symptoms would appear.

Even so, I could manage one person, but anything beyond that would be completely impossible…

“Phew.”

I arrived at the now unused (former) science lab.

Until today, I had wandered around school a bit each time I returned home, all to find classrooms like this one.

After today’s events, I would endure until school was over here.

It was possible that someone like me would come by in between, but that was manageable.

Outsiders recognize outsiders.

If someone were to find their way here, they would likely see me first and quietly retreat or go to the far opposite corner.

In other words, there’s no problem…!

Looking at the clock, it was already 8 o’clock.

It was almost time to return to class.

Despite being a classroom tucked away in a corner, voices were echoing in the (former) science lab, a sign of the

ongoing cultural festival.

“Ugh….”

I quietly stretched and let out a sigh.

A new challenge had approached me.

How was I going to solve this? Right now, I was genuinely pondering that.

The reason I arrive at school the earliest in the class is that the later I arrive, the more attention is directed at me when I enter.

I dislike that atmosphere where eyes are on me, but I also find it uncomfortable when someone realizes I’m not the

person they were looking for, and their interest wanes.

Especially since I had no friends in class, everyone almost simultaneously turns their gaze away from me.

So, I would rather arrive in the classroom first and pretend to be asleep.

If I arrive first, there’s almost no chance of feeling eyes on me aside from the second person who arrives briefly glancing my way.

Even in high school, Miyauchi usually arrives right after me, so I had become somewhat accustomed to it.

But now, I was in the (former) science lab.

And now it was time to return to the classroom.

In other words, returning to class now would mean facing the situation I feared most at school.

To put it metaphorically, it was like ordering chicken and receiving a cola that was actually Pepsi; that was the level of threat.

Coke and cola is a serious issue.

“Phew….”

But I had vowed not to run away anymore.

“Haa….”

I stood up from my seat, took one last deep breath, and opened the sliding door of the (former) science lab.

Then, slowly, I stepped out into the noisy hallway.

…I should have just left school early.

In reality, when I returned to class, there was no major issue.

The doors were wide open as everyone was changing into butler and maid outfits, and people were too busy chatting

about their appearances to pay attention to me.

There was no major issue.

I felt a few glances here and there, but that level of attention was similar to what I usually experienced, so it was fine.

But the problem came afterward.

Our class’s exhibit was a cosplay café.

The desserts were made by Miyauchi, and we used some sourced from outside, while we prepared drinks like coffee and black tea ourselves.

The method was simple: when a customer came in and chose a menu item, a butler or maid would go prepare that

item and engage in a brief conversation.

Yes.

I had to talk to the customers.

The thought of personally preparing coffee or black tea was already nerve-wracking, but having to converse too?

This was clearly a punishment devised to kill the class introvert.

The school that allowed such a terrible exhibit should reflect on their actions…

Of course, there were ways to avoid serving customers.

I could handle the cash register or stand at the door to attract customers as a mascot.

But ultimately, that meant having to converse with strangers too.

Especially the mascot role would involve managing the crowd if the line got long or if any issues arose.

So, here I was, in a dilemma.

“Then let’s have Kayano in charge of customer service.”

“…Okay.”

As expected, the world is too cruel…

[Shiodome High School Cultural Festival, starting now!]

With that announcement, the cultural festival, the first I had ever experienced in high school, began.

And our class was incredibly lively.

My flyers seemed to attract more attention than expected, as the classmates who returned from scouting reported

that our exhibit was the most popular among similar concepts.

…Thanks to that, the people responsible for serving customers, myself included, had no time to rest.

Was this a blessing or a curse…

“May I take your order?”

“Ah, um, yes…”

The fourth customer I served appeared to be a couple.

“I-I will assist you with your order, young master and young lady…”

“Ah, yes. I’ll have coffee with brownies.”

“I’ll have coffee with macarons, please…”

A couple.

I wanted to shoot a couple-destroying beam, but I was currently a butler serving customers.

Hold it together, me.

I had no intention of walking the path of hell right now…

• I felt like I would collapse if I didn’t think like this…